The Cowboys got back in the win column last night with a gritty win over the New York Giants, 20-15. They sure as heck won’t win any style points, but a win is a win, right?
First-half touchdowns by Rico Dowdle and CeeDee Lamb really made all the difference.
I’m not sure about you, but I hate Thursday Night Football games. Not just when the Cowboys play, but every single week.
These games are so sloppy, normally one-sided, and the short week leading up to the game causes injury to players that simply aren’t necessary.
Micah Parsons sustains an injury against the Giants
As the game was coming to an end, the defense was on the field trying to hold Daniel Jones and the Giants’ offense to no points.
The Cowboys’ best defender, Micah Parsons, had to be carted off the field in the fourth quarter with an apparent leg injury.
After the game, reporters asked Parsons about the condition of his injury in the locker room.
“Right now, I just iced it, you know, I know very little. I got an MRI tomorrow and I’m going to try to get back next week,” Parsons said.
The good news for the Cowboys and Parsons: He got X-rays done Thursday night, and those came back negative.
The good news for Dallas is that they now have a mini-bye, and get 10 days off before they play the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday Night Football next week.
I am not sure 10 days is enough for Parsons to recover.
We will see how the MRI goes this morning, but I wouldn’t even think about playing him unless he is near 100%. You know he will want to play, but why risk it?
DeMarcus Lawrence’s foot is still a problem
I was watching this as the game went on, and DeMarcus Lawrence was nursing that same foot he had hurt in the past.
In the second half, Dlaw was looking to bring down Jones for a sack, but when he was unable to, he looked as if he got rolled up on. He a had slight limp as he made it over to the sideline.
Lawrence already has the team’s lone sack of the game, his third in four games after two in the season opener against Deshaun Watson and the Cleveland Browns.
People don’t understand how big of a role Lawrence plays.
The Cowboys can’t afford to lose both of their best pass rushers at the same time. This will not bode well for this defense that has already struggled this season.
Next man up
With both Parsons and Lawrence in some pain and unsure if they can go next week, even with the mini-bye week, the Cowboys depth chart needs a next-man-up mentality.
Carl Lawson was elevated for this game. While he did have an awful offsides penalty that took away a Trevon Diggs interception, he rebounded and had solid pressure late in the 4th right as Parsons got hurt.
My guess is that Lawson will be the guy, plus someone else to get a lot of time if Parsons is out next week.
Rookie Marshawn Kneeland will be the guy that gets his name called to start next week if Lawrence can’t go. He did have a sack in this game.
This team needed this win, regardless of how it looked, but man did it come with a cost.
This team is already thin enough everywhere that the last thing they need is for two key defenders to miss extended time.
It sounds like right now all is well, and they will be fine, but I wouldn’t push Micah to play against the Steelers, even with three extra days off.
This football team has so much to work on, but 2-2 is a lot better than 1-3, I will tell you that.